


The Midnight Quest

by SongsofPsyche



Series: Midnight Quest (aka The Misadventures of Princess Alisada and the Evil Wizard Swagathor) [1]
Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Aragorn Angst, Captive, Curses, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt Aragorn, Hurt/Comfort, Magic, Muteness, What happens when a nobody wizard tries to be evil and catches the eye of Saruman, captive princess, prisoner
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-12
Updated: 2016-12-14
Packaged: 2018-09-08 05:28:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8832235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SongsofPsyche/pseuds/SongsofPsyche
Summary: Aragorn has been captured and taken prisoner by an evil wizard with an even eviler purpose. He must escape, but how can he when his voice has been taken? It's now up to a young woman who has been a prisoner herself to break them both free.





	1. In which Aragorn finds himself in a nasty spot and meets a captive princess

**Author's Note:**

> Slightly AU.....sorry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This came to me out of the blue one night, and I absolutely had to write a story where the main villains name is Swagathor. Just had to. Plus, the whole reason I wrote this was to set up the NEXT story I am writing, about Alisada's adventures with the company of Thorin Oakenshield (she falls in love with Fili). When you are done with this one, please continue on to the sequel, "For the Love of Gold."
> 
> Thanks!

"Alisada, wake up!"

I jolt awake in bed, it is morning. I turn to see my “Uncle”, Lord Swagathor looking in at me through the doorway. He is a tall man, with tan skin and dark curly hair. He hasn’t managed to grow a full on beard yet, but he has a rather pointy goatee.  He is already dressed in his wizard’s clothes—dark brown tunic, a swooping black cape and spangled boots.

"I cannot believe you are still asleep. I need your help in the dungeons today. We have a new prisoner that will not break. I expect to see you downstairs in ten minutes"

And then he leaves.

I sigh, then get out of bed. I hate doing my Uncle’s (he insists that I call him my uncle, even though we are not related….I think he thinks it makes him sound eviler) bidding, especially when it comes to the prisoners. I hate gaining their trust and then exposing them. It’s a sick little game he likes to play—one of the few things he does that is _actually_ evil. If only I could run away, but where would I go? This is the only home I have. If Swagathor hadn’t captured me after my parents abandoned me in Fangorn forest, I don’t know where I would be. I think it was the only thing that that was left for them to do, honestly. I was not a very good princess back at home and being an evil wizard’s captive basically guaranteed me a good marriage. That is, if a prince or a hero rescues me.

I have begun to lose hope though, I was captured almost ten years ago and not once has a prince or a hero or a king come to rescue me. I just don’t think the appeal is right. First of all, who has heard of the evil wizard Swagathor? No one. Absolutely no one. It would be different if I was Saruman’s captive princess, for example. He’s practically a celebrity in the Evil Wizard Department. But he probably doesn’t have time for a princess, and even if he did he wouldn’t be interested in the trivial concerns of princes and princesses and being rescued. He would probably just feed me to his orcs and be done with it.

Lord Swagathor has tried very hard to break into the Evil Wizard circle here in Middle Earth. He has a top of the line dungeon, a herd of his very own in residence orcs and a very evil looking tower that highly resembles Isengard expertly named The Tower of Terror. The thing is though, he’s just not a very good wizard. I applaud him for trying, but his acts of evilness have been lacking well…..evil. First of all, his prisoners keep escaping (mostly because he believes that every dungeon must have a secret escape route, which they all find very easily), and then there are his in residence orcs. They are not very evil, compared to the orcs of Mordor or Saruman’s Urkui. They prefer knitting over pillaging and are quite lazy. The evilest thing they have done so far is make the kitchen a mess—which I have to clean out every day.

I sigh and stand up from my bed, walk over to my wardrobe and pull on a midnight blue dress that is studded with sapphires and has a horrible clashing embroidery of a tortoise courting a flamingo. I don’t know where Swagathor gets his clothes…..they are quite hideous. I pull my long black hair into a bun that hangs at the nap of my neck. I slip on my black leather boots, pull on my black cloak ( Swagathor requires all residence to wear swooping black cloaks) and then head downstairs quickly. I cannot risk being late. Last time I was late he threatened to turn me into a troll, and when he tried he accidently gave me the ability to see in the dark. A sometimes useful gift, but since his magic is so unpredictable I would rather not be late. The next time his spell might actually work.

I see him waiting for me at the foot of the staircase.

"Good morning, Lord Swagathor."

"You are late."

That is his typical greeting. He turns towards the dungeons.

"Come"

And starts walking down. I follow behind him, my cloak billowing. The dungeon is very dark, with only the oil lamps for light. It gives off the perfect illusion of an evil dungeon, even though I know for a fact Swagathor had to bewitch the windows to not let light in, and that the oil lamps flickered ominously only because the spell he cast on them was wearing off. Swagathor stops in front of one of the cells and hands me a tray. On it is a few chunks of bread and cheese, a bowl of hot water and some rags.

"He is getting weaker. You must get him to eat and clean him up or else he is useless to us." He says dramatically, his brown eyes flashing evilly.

He opens the door for me and motions for me to go inside. "I will leave the door open for you, there is no chance of him escaping and remember to stick to the script." he says, and then pushes me inside.

It takes my eyes a few seconds to adjust, and then I see a lone figure sitting in the very far corner of the cell. As I approach I notice that his hands are bound behind him, and his feet are shackled to the floor. A thick clothe covers his mouth, gagging him. His head rests against the wall and his eyes are closed. Blood is caked around the gag and on his forehead. I see many bruises and abrasions. Poor man, I wonder what ill fate caused him to run into Lord Swagathor. Probably fell into one of his traps down by the river. I cannot tell if he is asleep or not. As I approach him slowly, his eyes snap open and he looks at me with steely grey eyes.

"Hello" I say softly, hoping he understands common tongue. He remains motionless, but keeps his eyes on me. I kneel down next to him, this startles him and he tries to move away from me but cannot. His bounds make it impossible for him to move at all.

"Its alright. I just brought you some food" I tell him, and then I undo the gag and untie his wrists. He remains motionless for a few seconds, then pulls his hands in front of him and winces softly. I see bloody rope marks on his wrists.

"Here" I tell him, wetting the rag and handing it to him "clean yourself up, you cannot risk getting an infection".

These are word for word lines that I have memorized from Swagathor’s Prisoner script. They sound dumb, even to my ears.

He takes the rag and wipes his face and hands. When he is done I take the rag and give him a chunk of bread.

"Eat." I tell him. He takes the bread in one hand but does not eat it. He stares at me, his eyes narrowing.

"Why are you helping me?" he whispers softly.

"Because it is my duty. I am a servant of Swagathor."

His eyes narrow, “Who?”

“The mighty and evil Lord Swagathor. You have been unfortunate enough to fall into his dungeons, here at the dreaded Tower of Terror. He is in allegiance with the almighty evil wizard, Lord Saruman.” I recite to him.

 His eyes flash with fear at the mention of Saruman, he throws the bread to the ground. "Then why should I trust you?"

"Because I am the only thing you can trust in this place."

He glares at me "Get out. I am will not make alliances with the enemy."

I hesitate for only a second, then I reach for the shackles hanging from the ceiling. In a quick flawless motion I clip them on his wrists (as the script  dictates).

"The you have chosen to remain friendless." I tell him coldly then I leave, slamming the door shut behind me, again as the script dictated.

As I leave, I roll my eyes. “Tower of Terror” indeed. Did Swagathor still allow the orcs to write his Dungeon Scripts? If this guy is as smart as he looks, he will see right through this and be gone by nightfall. Too bad he’s not a knight, or a prince. I could have used a good rescue attempt.

  
  



	2. In which Alisada is cursed again, an orc meets an unfortunate fate and a moth delivers a message

 

"So, Alisada. Did you learn anything from him?" Swagathor is waiting for me outside the cell, his cold eyes bright with excitement. I shake my head.

"Did he eat?"

"No"

"Fool of a girl!" He points his staff at me, and sparks spring out of it. Suddenly I feel a tingling sensation in my bones.

"He is useless to us if he remains weak. Saruman will not be pleased if he is dead by the time we get to him. We need answers from the prisoner now. Do it or else I will curse you" He whispers threateningly to me.

“I think you already have.” I answer, staring at my fingers, which are now glowing a bright purple.

“Have what?”

“Cursed me?” I answer, giving my hand a cautionary wave. There was a bright flash, a scream and a bright pink ceramic coffee mug appears out of thin air---no not out of thin air-- where Gregory the orc guard had been standing. It---Gregory---- levitates for a moment and then crashes onto the ground, shattering into a million pink pieces.

We both stare at the shattered glass.

“Alas, poor Gregory.” I finally say.

“Ahhh HA! You have now been cursed! I did it!” Swagathor yells in triumph,

“I expect you do complete your chores for today, and tomorrow you will be back here and you WILL get me some answers” he screeches, and then swoops up the stairs, his cloak billowing behind him.

I stare at the prison door as a million questions pop into my mind, why did we need answers? Who was this guy anyone?  Why was he suddenly talking about Saruman? And why was Swagathor so caught up with this particular prisoner. Usually he puts on the show with me, and then heads back up into his study to practice more evil magic. He never shows this much interest. But then again, maybe this is part of a new script he wrote. Maybe he’s creating more drama so the prisoners feel more afraid than they have to.

When I get to my room, instead of falling onto my bed and sobbing (like the script says) instead, I walk towards my desk and sit down. The first thing I do when I get to the desk is open the drawer and pull out a pair of horribly ugly gloves that are supposed to block magic. I don’t want to accidently turn anyone else into a bright pink coffee mug. Over the years I have learned a little bit about magic, and what it can do to you if it comes at you inexpertly. The gloves would help. Once I have found them, I pull out my notebook and think. There was something about this man, something about his eyes that makes me shiver. He is not like the others. I wonder who he is, and how he came to be here. Swagathor’s interest in this man is quite unusual, most of the time his traps never catch people of importance. Usually it’s just a wandering farmer, or enchanted prince. Sometimes it’s his own orcs, and one time it was Swagathor himself. He was fairly embarrassed that he had been caught by his own trap. That had been a fun day. Maybe, just maybe his trap had caught someone of importance, someone that has to do with the war that is brewing in the east. I briefly wish that he would just tell me, but I push that aside because it is a useless wish. He never tells me anything. I am just his captive princess.

I sigh and shake my head as I hear the bells in the hallway toll. It’s time to start my chores, whether I like it or not. I stand up again, and turn around to the magic mirror next to my bookcase. On it, as if an invisible had was writing were my instructions for the day. I read:

1)Clean Orc’s toilets

2)Polish stair banisters

3)Clean dungeon rack

4)Feed Dungeon Rats

5)Cook Dinner (NO Brussel sprouts this time)

 

Swagathor always has a schedule for me, including all the things he thinks a captive princess should do while she is in captivity. The evilest include cleaning all the bathrooms in the tower. He also likes me to cook him lunch, and dinner. I have gotten quite good at cooking over the years, and I have come to enjoy it. I sigh, and then begin my work.

 Once I am done with the toilets (it took me almost all afternoon, for the tower has 23 toilets, 9 bathrooms and one water closet, plus I had another pink coffee mug incident and had to get that sorted before the orc’s wife found out, apparently they turn back into themselves when filled with hot water). Once  I have  polished the banisters, fed the dungeon rats and cleaned the racks . I head down to the kitchen to start dinner.

“No Brussel sprouts no vegetables at all. I’ve never met such a picky wizard before…..fine if you want to get scurvy and die, then be my guest!” I mutter darkly as I pick my ingredients from the pantry and then head towards the kitchen.

As I enter the kitchen, I hear a slight buzzing and then a ping, ping, ping, pong. I turn on the oil lamps and look around. The buzzing is coming from the kitchen window, where a giant white moth is hitting the window, each time it hits the glass it makes a slight ping sound.

“Hold on, I’m coming.” I tell it as I dump my basket of food on the table, then rush to the window and open it.

“It’s about time.” It says harshly as it flew in.

I stare at it. Talking animals are common in this part of the forest, but I have never seen a talking moth before.

“I’ve been here for nearly an hour. What have you been doing? Lazing around, I bet.” It grumbles as it flies over to the table and perches on the basket of fruit.

“I apologize for my lateness.” I tell it, thinking that it’s probably better to remain polite.

“Are you Lord Swagathor? I bring news from Gandalf.” It says

“Who?” I ask

“Gandalf. You know, the white wizard.” It says, twitching its large antennas irritably.

“Never heard of him.”

“Well, that really doesn’t matter. What  matters is his message, which I need to give to someone.That was my instruction. Fly to the Tower of Terror and tell anyone who isn’t Lord Swagathor my message.  So I am asking again, are you Lord Swagathor?”

“No. No I’m Alisada, his captive princess.”

“A princess? Oh great. Just what I needed, to run into an empty headed, blonde haired nitwit. Is there anyone else whom I can give my message to?” it asks

At this point, I am rather annoyed. Who is he calling dimwitted?

“For your information, I am not blonde. And I am probably the only one in this place who has any sense. Please, give me the message.” I tell it.

“Why should I trust you?” it asks

“Because I’m not a very suitable princess. That’s why my parents abandoned me in the first place. They knew if I was taken captive by an evil wizard, I would be rescued by a prince and live happily ever after. It was their only option.” I answer hotly.

The moth flapped it wings thoughtfully, “If you don’t mind, could you explain that to me in more detail?”

I sit down next to the moth, “This might take a while.”

“I have all the time in the world.”

“Okay….well….I guess it all started with when an evil sorceress came to my first birthday party.”

“Did she curse you?”

“No, no not at all. She drank margaritas until she was tipsy, danced the tango with my Uncle Fred, ate all the birthday cake and had a marvelous time. Such a good time that she forgot to curse me, infact she gave me a gift: for as long as I live, I will never have any acne. She even sent a thank you card. That’s when the trouble started, you see when an evil sorceress comes to your first party you are supposed to get a curse. That’s how it works. But I didn’t receive a curse, and ever since then my life has been a disaster.”

“How sad for you.” The moth mumbled.

“Personally, I think it was a great gift. I have never had a problem with my skin. But my parents didn’t think it was good enough. Even since then they have tried to get me cursed, or taken by a dragon, or turned into a frog. It was a nightmare. One time they hired an eagle to take me up into the Smokey Hills, and I found a dragon. She absolutely refused to take me captive. In fact, she offered me a magic cloak that would turn me into shadows in exchange for me leaving her alone. My parents weren’t exactly thrilled when I came back.  They hired all these teachers to show me how to be a good captive—when to scream at the right moment, when to plead for mercy, how to wear my hair so I look the most appealing to an angry dragon—silliness like that. I guess my parents became tired of the whole thing though, because then they told me to deliver a basket of muffins to my “grandmother” who lived in Fangorn forest, and that’s when I got caught in one of Swagathor’s traps. I’ve been here ever since.”

“That’s quite a compelling story, but I can tell you are telling the truth. I shall give you Gandalf’s message.”

“Great.”

“Gandalf says that in the dungeons of Swagathor, a man named Aragorn is being held. He is highly important to the war that is happening right now, and we need him to come to Helm’s Deep immediately. Saruman’s army is four days away, and the King needs Aragorn to take command or else all will be lost. Aragorn was on a secret mission, he was traveling with a fellowship guarding the One Ring of Power. Something that Saruman wants very, very badly. It is essential that Saruman does not get the ring. Swagathor intends to turn Aragorn over to Saruman in the day after tomorrow, and this cannot happen. Aragorn must escape, and head towards Helms Deep.”

“Okay….”

“You must make sure he gets there.” The moth finished, looking up at me.

“What? Me?”

“Yes. You.”

“How?”

“Whatever it takes. I bid you good day now. I must fly back to Gandalf and tell him the news. Goodbye.”

The moth then flapped its wings and flew out the window before I had the chance to shout at him to wait.

I sigh and sit down. What am I going to do now? It’s not like I can run away………wait a minute. I can run away. And take this Aragorn person with me, I could-----

"WHO HAS THE RING OF POWER? I KNOW OF YOUR FELLOWSHIP, TELL ME WHERE IT IS!"

The kitchen suddenly shakes with the power of Swagathor. Apparently he has used a spell to make his voice super loud and booming. I guess it would be intimidating to the right person.  I listen to the yelling for a moment, for the first time in a long time it actually sounds like Swagathor knows what he is doing, or at least he has some information about who this guy is. His questions line up with the moth’s story. As I cook, I try to think of a way to break out Aragorn while remaining hidden from Swagathor. It’s almost too easy. Swagathor is not a particularly good wizard, and his security is lacking. All I need to do is find a window where the tower will be quiet enough for me and Aragorn to sneak out.

For the first time in a long time, I feel the fragile blossoms of hope in my chest. I could escape! I could finally be free.


	3. In which Alisada wears clothes that clash terribly, Aragorn is cursed into speechlessness and they escape from the Tower of Terror

When I get up to my room I immediately begin to pace. I need to start planning.  I know of Gondor, it is the city of men. I’ve never been to it, but my father did trade with them. I remember what the moth said, how Aragorn was an important factor in this war. If I want Middle Earth to stay the way it is, I must get Aragorn to safety, to Helm’s Deep. If he truly is who Swagathor says he is, he is the key to winning this war. Even though I am far away from my home, I am from the world of men. This war affects me just as much as the villages of Rohan, and the other settlements of men. And besides, helping Aragorn escape sounds a lot more fun than cleaning the Orc's kitchen.   

As I am pacing, trying to formulate I plan, I hear it; A bloodcurdling scream coming from the dungeons. Swagathor's promised torture has begun.I  cannot tell if it is Aragorn actually screaming, or the magical recording Swagathor plays during Torture Time to upset the prisoners. It could be a bit of both. None the less, I need to think quickly if I want to be able to leave tonight. First I need to pack here, then get down to the dungeons, free Aragorn and then get to the stables and get out of here. It sounds easy enough, as long as we are not caught. 

I quickly pack my bag with clothes, and some of the food that I have hidden in my room. Unfortunately, I do not have any plain traveler’s clothes. Swagathor is a firm believer that a captive princess should look like a princess. All the dresses I have are either tacky, or cliché. One actually has been enchanted to flash and give off sparks as I walk. I rummage deep into the closet and find the plainest dress I can: a dark green dress made of rich velvet. I would have preferred pants but I have none (it's not proper for a princess to wear pants, according to tradition). When I am done, I began pacing again trying to ignore the ever going screams. I decide to keep my gloves one (even though they don’t match my dress, and look slightly weird because they are fancy dress gloves that are made of purple fabric, lace and sequins but they do block magic so I will have to keep them), I have no idea if the curse will wear off or not, or if it’s something I have to deal with permanently. I would rather not turn anyone else into a bright pink coffee mug though. 

It is not until long after nightfall that the screams stop (Torture Time at the Tower of Terror runs from 6:00pm to 9:35pm). I wait another hour, until all is quiet and then I silently head down towards the dungeon. Gregory had been the keeper of the keys, but since he got turned into a bright pink coffee cup and then shattered, the keys were just handing on a hook. I quickly take them and put them in my pocket. It’s time to begin my midnight quest. 

I open the Aragorn’s cell door with the stolen keys as quietly as I can. I  know am not supposed to be here and I also know that sometimes the alarm works, but most of the time it does not. It's triggered by sound, not movement so as long as we are extra quiet no one will know we are escaping. I raise the  lamp I am holding and walk over to the figure in the corner. He looks much weaker than he did before; his head rests against the corner wall, and through his hair I see dark red marks around his neck. He's still, but not asleep. I can see his eyes flashing in the dim lantern light as I kneed down next to him. He looks exhausted.  

“It’s time, Aragorn. Let’s get out of here.” I tell him 

He doesn’t move. 

I kneel down next to him, I thought he would be excited to escape. 

“Aragorn, are you alright?” I ask 

He remains silent, his eyes move down to his shackled hands and he sighs quietly. He will not look at me.  

"Why are you silent? please tell me." I ask him, his eyes fly up and meet mine, he taps his throat and then shakes his head. 

"Can you not speak?" I asked him quietly.  

He repeats the motion. I stare at him in disbelief, what kind of torture had Swagathor  used on this man to render him mute? And why? Didn’t Swagathor need Aragron to speak if he was bringing him to Saruman? 

 "Did Swagathor do this?" I ask, knowing that it's an obvious question but I just wanted to make sure. He nods again. 

"Then we have to get out of here or will be killed…..or at least cursed. You have no idea what he is capable of. Really, you don’t. He is much more dangerous than the most evil wizard. Mainly because half the time he has no idea what he is doing, and his magic is sporadic at best." I tell him. I kneel down next to him and fumble with the keys.  

"Give me your hands." I ask. He doesn't move at all. I look at his face, and see dark circles under his eyes and a grim expression on his face. He looks like he is giving up. I give a frustrated sigh he isnt being very helpful right now, and grab his left wrist. I hold up the keys to the weak light, trying to find the right one. He doesn't resist at all. I finally find the right one, and quickly unlock his other hand. Then I move to his ankles. Once he is free, I stand up. 

"Can you stand?" I ask. He nods. I offer my hand to help him up and he takes it. "Can you walk?" I ask, he shrugs.  

"Good enough, let's go. As long as we are quiet, we should go unnoticed." and we exit the cell. We stand in the lamp light and he raises his eyebrows at my gloves, which clash hideously with my dress. 

“It’s a long story.” I tell him 

He shrugs his shoulders, and then points towards the stairs. 

I look at the stairs too and suddenly it hits me; I am escaping without a formulated plan. This is not how a rescue is supposed to go. A rescue takes a plan. I don’t have one. Oh my goodness, what am I doing? 

"Act like you know what your doing even when you don't." I tell myself, trying to be brave. The we start as we climb up the stairs. We need to go to my room, then the stables, find a horse somehow escape without being seen.  

"How are we going to do this? This is impossible." I whisper out loud. 

Aragorn just shrugs 

"Thanks, that’s very helpful, I’ll try that." I shoot back sarcastically at him. I am beginning to feel frustrated. Then I immediately feel bad for snapping, he can’t help his silence. 

"We need to get to the stables." I tell him, "but first we need my bag. It’s in my room." he just nods then motions with his hands as if to say "lead the way." 

I can totally tell he thinks I'm an idiot for not having a well thought out plan. I can feel my face starting to burn. 

We somehow manage to get to my room without being seen. I shut the door and lock it behind me. 

I grab the bag that I had packed earlier. I hesitate, then rummage around in my desk for a notebook and a few pencils. 

"For you." I tell him. He blushes a deep red, but nods thanks. 

"Did you have weapons? Did they take them from you?" I asked him. He nods. Damn. I'll have to run back down to the dungeon and retrieve them. 

"What did they look like? I will get them." 

He tries to speak, his lips form words but no sounds. He sighs in frustration then motions for the notebook and pencil. I give them to him and he begins to draw out a sword, and then a few smaller knives. He then writes a few sentences in elvish. He points to the sentences, then to the sword. 

 "Those are the markings on the sword?" I ask him. He nods. I take the drawings. 

 "Okay. There is a washroom there behind the bed if you need to. Stay quiet, and I will be right back." 

I slowly walk down to the dungeon once again. Trying to be very quiet. I still have the keys in my pocket, and then jangle with an uncommon loudness. When I reach the door to the room that contains the weapons of those condemned, I fumble with the keys. Which one is it? After a few attempts I finally find the right one. I open the door and look around for Aragorn's sword. I find it, along with the two knives and a belt in a bundle in a cabinet. They are wrapped in a thick wool cloak, which I assume is his as well. To make things easier, I pull the cloak over my shoulders and buckle the belt around my waist. The I hurry back up to my room. 

He is sitting on my bed when I reenter my room. He raises his eyebrows slightly when he sees me wearing his things. 

"Sorry, but I needed to carry them somehow." I tell him, as I hand him his cloak and belt. He nods thanks. 

I quickly walk over to my closet and pull out my own traveler's cloak (it is an unfortunate lime green color), and then rummage around until I find my sword. I pull the cloak on and attach the sword to my dress with a string with my belt. I am lucky I have a sword, it was one of the few things I was allowed to take with me when I was abandoned in the forest. 

I pick up my bag and sling in on my shoulder. I take a deep breath. 

 "Are you ready?" I ask, he nods. "Good, then let’s go." and we step out of the room, into the blackness of the hallway. 

The Tower of Terror is quiet as we silently walk through the hallways towards the stables. I see nobody around and pray that Swagathor won’t awaken. He has all these complicated night guard shifts, but the orcs rarely pay attention to them anymore. They would rather sleep. We reach the stables without anyone questioning us (even though I was quite prepared to use my "gift" if it was needed). 

"Thank goodness." I sigh in relief as I quickly saddle one of the horse. "We will have to ride together." I tell him. He just nods. 

When the horse is saddled and ready, I motion for Aragorn to mount first. 

 "You seem like you know how to ride." I tell him, not wanting to fully admit that I have never been on a horse before. He nods and mounts gracefully, then offers an arm to pull me up. 

As he does, the sleeve of his shirt slides and I see the marks from the shackles and realize that eventually I would have to tell him everything; about Swagathor, and the Sorceress, and about my being a prisoner too. But it would have to wait. For now, at least. 

I silently accept his arm. "Thank you" I tell him. He just nods, and then stirs the horse toward the open stable door. 

As we gallop away, I smile for the first time in days. I am finally free. 


	4. In which a horse gets turned into a coffee mug and no one dies

We ride  until we are both exhausted. Aragorn seems to know where he is going. As we ride, I tell him exactly what the moth said to me. Hopefully we are headed towards Helms Deep. We finally stop in a well protected area covered in boulders. I hear the trickle of a stream nearby, this is perfect. Aragorn dismounts gracefully then holds out a hand for me. I take it, but loose my balance and fall off. He tries to catch me, and as he does he somehow manages to pull one of my gloves off. There is a flash of purple light and suddenly the horse is a bright pink coffee mug. I fall the extra three feet and he catches me, our faces are two inches from each other and I can tell he is amused, but also slightly worried because our horse is now a cup. 

"Oh stop laughing. I know how to fix it. We need to heat up some water" I tell him. I see a smile for a quick second but then it is gone. He pulls away from me and picks up the cup, looks at it thoughtfully, then begins gathering wood for a fire. I stand next to him awkwardly. I have no idea how to help. 

"Anything I can do?" I ask 

He shakes his head, then motions for me to stand still (he probably doesn’t want anything else to be turned into a coffee mug) and continues to build the fire. He somehow manages to light in within a few minutes. 

"Wow, you really know what your doing." I compliment him with a smile. 

"How did you get so good?" 

He shrugs. 

I sit down next to him and warm my hands (first making sure my gloves are on and secure). For the first time I can really see him in the light. He has dark shoulder length hair, a strong jaw and grey eyes. I cannot tell how old he is, one minute he looks as young and me and the next he looks old enough to be my grandfather. I cannot figure this man out. He notices me staring, then tries to speak but cannot make a sound. He tries several more times and then sighs and motions like he is writing. I nod, and dig around in my bag for the pencil and paper. As I hand it to him he nods thanks, and then begins writing; 

"Thank you for helping me escape." I read. 

"Your welcome." 

I hand the paper back to him and he begins to write something else. I read; 

"To answer your question; I was a ranger of the north for some time. If you don’t mind, I have some questions for you." 

I nod my head, “I bet you do. Ask away, but first hand me the coffee mug. I think the water is hot enough to get our horse back.” 

He nods, and hands me the cup. I quickly ladle a few spoonfuls of boiling hot water into it and then throw it up into the air. There is a sharp pop! And our horse reappears. It bends down and chews a a piece of a bush. 

He raises his eyebrows at the horse, and then turns to the pen and paper. He writes: 

"Have you always had powers? How did you come to be with Swagathor? How did the moth find you? How do you know who I am? Where are you going to next?" 

He passes the paper over to me. 

I sigh. That’s a lot of questions. 

“Okay…let’s see…..I’ll start from the beginning, I guess. I am a princess, daughter of the King of Asparagus---yes like the vegetable, our founding fathers thought it would be funny. It all started when an evil sorceress came to my first birthday party, and she had a such a good time she forgot to curse me. That’s when the trouble started. My parents tried everything to get me cursed again, but nothing worked so they decided to abandon me in Fangorn forest. That’s when I fell into one of Swagathor’s traps and he made me his captive princess. My parents were thrilled. It’s perfectly respectable to be a wizard’s princess, and it basically guarantees a good marriage if I am rescued. I have been under Swagathor’s care for about eight years now. Nobody it seems has heard of the wizard Swagathor though, nor do they want to rescue a princess from a land called Asparagus. So I have been stuck with him. It all hasn’t been a loss though, I can now cook 34 different kinds of dishes, I am wonderful at cleaning toilets and I can turn objects into bright pink coffee cups. Oh, and I can see in the dark. Let’s see, that answers one of the questions. The other, no. I have not always had powers. The coffee cup thing is new. You see, Swagathor is not a very good wizard. He really wants to be evil, but he’s just not that good at spells. He tried to curse me, and I got this power instead. What was he trying to do to you?” 

Aragorn thought for a moment, and then wrote: 

“He wanted to turn me into a rabbit, and then feed me to his Snargelblasts.” 

“Well, I’m glad that particular curse didn’t work. Losing your voice is a lot better than being turned into a rabbit and being fed to Snargelblasts.” 

“And anyways….. the Snargelblasts would  have probably been too scared of a rabbit to go near it, let alone eat it.” I add as an afterthought.  

Aragorn nodded. 

“What were the other questions?” I asked, looking at the paper. 

“The moth told me who you were, and I put the pieces together. And you were the only human prisoner. Let’s see, where do I plan to go? I plan to go with you. It’s time I’ve left Swagathor. See the world. That kind stuff. Saving Rohan seems like a good start. And besides, I have nowhere else to go. I haven’t been rescued yet so I can’t go home. It would a disgrace, they would send me right back to Swagathor. So you see, I had to escape." I tell him. He raises his eyebrows at me as if to say "really?". 

"Please, take me with you?" I finish, hoping that he could trust me enough to let me come with him. 

He eyes narrow, and I can tell he is sizing me up. Finally, after what seems like an eternity he nods and gives me a slight smile. 

"Thank you!" 

I pull out the food I had packed from my pack, surveying how much I have. 

"How many days until we reach Helms Deep?" I ask. He tries to speak, again making no sounds, then holds up two fingers. 

"Two days?" 

He nods. 

"Alright, we should have enough food." I tell him, and then hand him a roll and some smoked meat. He nods thanks and accepts the food. 

We eat in silence, but a thousand questions are running through my head. Will he ever be able to speak again? Will he lead men to battle? How will he do that if he cannot speak? 

I am too shy to ask him any of these questions, then he notices me staring at him and gives me a questioning look. I shake me head, "Sorry." He shrugs it off. He grabs the pen and paper and writes; 

"Get some sleep, we will need to ride fast tomorrow." 

I nod but ask "What about you?" He shakes his head and points to the horizon "I'll watch." he mouths, pointing to himself. 

"Alright, goodnight" I say, and he nods. 

I fall asleep to the crackling of the fire and the twinkling of the stars. Tomorrow begins my new journey to Helms Deep. 


	5. In which Alisada becomes quite good at giving pep talks and for once no one gets cursed.

I awaken to a hand shaking my shoulder. I open my eyes; it is barely light outside. "What time is it?" I murmur sleepily, still waking up. I sit up and Aragorn nods good morning, then hands be a cup of something hot. It smells like tea. 

"Thank you, Aragorn." 

I notice that he looks grimmer, and sadder than before. 

"How is your voice?" 

He shrugs, and then attempts speaking again. Nothing. He touches his fingers to his forehead, looking frustrated and defeated. 

"It’s alright, we'll figure something out. Swagathor's spell shouldn’t last forever. One time he was trying to turn one of the prisoners into a gnat, but the spell bounced off the stone and hit me in the face. I could only speak using words than began with the letter W for about two weeks, and then the spell wore off. " I tell him, trying to be comforting. He shrugs again, looking doubtful. 

I sip my tea, it’s very good. Almost like peppermint. Aragorn is writing something else on the paper; 

"If we leave now, we may reach Helm's Deep late this evening." 

I can tell he is anxious to get going. I nod, "Alright. Im am ready when you are." I tell him, and begin drinking my tea faster. 

We are back on the horse (who is quite happy to be a horse again) about fifteen minutes later, heading towards the west. 

We arrive at Helms Deep just after sunset, after riding all day, I am exhausted. As we approach the tall walls I turn around and ask him; 

"What are you going to tell them?" 

I then immediately regret asking, because he now looks even more concerned, defeated and doubtful than he did before. He shakes his head, as if to say "I don’t know." 

"I’m sorry." I say quietly, but then he puts his hand on mine and squeezes it 

"it’s okay". 

As soon as we enter the gates, I realize how influential of a person Aragorn must be. Many people shout in relief; 

"Thank goodness, Its Lord Aragorn!" 

"We are saved!" 

Aragorn dismounts, then helps me. I am a bit more graceful this time and he takes care not to touch my gloves. He hands the horse over to an attending, and then motions for me to follow him. I do, trying not to lose him in the bustle of people in the corridors. As we approach two big doors, a tall being, with fair blonde hair and bright blue hair approaches. I recognize this being, I have seen others like him in storybooks. He is an elf. 

"You are late." He says. I can see he is trying to hide a smile. 

Aragorn puts a hand on the elf's shoulder. The elf smiles and then hands him something. 

"You wouldn’t want to lose this." he says. I step forward to see what it is; a beautiful white and silver pendant. The elf sees me. "Who is this?" he asks, directing the question to Aragorn. I answer; 

"I am Alisada, recently freed princess of the wizard, Lord Swagathor.” 

"It’s a please to meet you, Alisada. I’m sure you will be safe here in Helm's Deep." He answers and he raises an eyebrow at Aragorn as if to say _who is this girl?_  

"Thank you." 

He turns to Aragorn. 

"King Theodon is inside, I’m sure he wishes to speak with you." Aragorn nods again, then puts the pendant around his neck. He looks almost scared. I decide to speak up; 

"May I come, I have heard news of Lord Saruman. He is mobilizing an army, the King needs to know." I tell Legolas. He just nods, "Thank you, Alisada but a court is no place for a woman. Lord Aragorn and I will handle this." and then he gives me another nod, dismissing me. 

Aragorn tries to suppress a yawn, and then winces. Holding a hand to his chest. Legolas's notices his discomfort. "You should rest first, I will tell the king of Isengard’s army. Come, I will show you your quarters" He tells his friend. Aragorn nods thanks, and then turns to me and motions for me to follow him. And I do, looking forward to a change of clothes and a full nights rest after a long ride. 

I wake up late the next morning, on my own cot in my own room. I stretch and get up, hoping to find some breakfast. As I am looking for food, I think of Aragorn. It seems like this place needs him. From what I saw and heard last night, it seems like we are going into a losing battle. There is barely 300 men here, and Saruman’s army is of 10,000. Where is Aragorn? Did he tell Legolas? He seems like a person everyone can trust, I am sure he will be able to help. If he truly is the heir to Gondor, leadership is in his blood. I hope he knows this, he seems so unsure of himself. 

I finally find breakfast (a role of bread, I grab two), and I decided to go outside to eat it. Helms deep is bustling with movement; horses, and people are moving all around carrying blades, armor, food and other things. I scan the area, looking for a place to sit, and then I look upward towards one of the towers and I see Aragorn sitting on the ledge, looking out into the distance. I smile, then head up there hoping he will let me sit with him. 

He is sitting quietly, looking grave. 

"Good morning!" I say, trying to be cheerful, he turns around and looks at me, then nods. 

"I brought you some breakfast." I tell him, handing him the bread. 

He takes it but does not eat. 

"Are you alright?" I ask him 

He shrugs, and I see fear in his eyes. I put my hand on his shoulder 

"You can..." 

But then I am interrupted by someone saying "Aragorn!" 

I turn around and see his elf friend, Legolas. He acknowledges me with a nod, and walks over, looking concerned. 

"You have been here for nearly a day and you have still remained silent. Is something troubling you?" he says 

Aragorn shakes his head, I can tell that he is having difficulty trying to figure out how to tell his friend that he is mute. He taps his throat, then shakes his head again. 

"You cannot speak?" Legolas asks, Aragorn nods. 

"How did this happen?" Legolas asks. 

Aragorn shoots me a look, I sigh and then say. 

"He was tortured by Swagathor." I tell him. 

"And how do you know this?" 

"Because we both escaped from Swagathor's fortress, The Tower of Terror." I tell him. 

"Who is this Lord Swagathor? I have never heard of him. Alas, this cannot be true, we need your voice in this war!" He exclaims to Aragorn, very frustrated. 

Aragorn sighs and then begins to walk away, down the staircase and towards the door. "Wait!" I shout, running after him, grabbing his shoulder. "Where are you going?" I ask. He ignores me. 

"Aragorn you cannot abandon these people. You are their leader, their king." Legolas shouts after him. He turns on his heels and glares at the elf. 

"I am no king." he mouths slowly. 

Then I see the defeat in his eyes. He is giving up. 

I follow him. This can't be happening. We are on the brink of war with no defenses and our only hope is walking out the door. 

"Yes you are. That's what the moth said. Do not lose hope, Aragorn. The spell will wear off, I promise. Wait!" I shout at him. He doesn’t stop. 

"Aragorn, I don’t know you very well, but from what I’ve seen I know that you are a natural leader. Even if you can’t utter a word these people will still follow you. They need you. Please don’t run away." he stops, and I catch up to him and look in his eyes. 

"Look, I know this is hard, but you are so strong. They need you, I need you. We will be able to all look out for each other and win this only if you stay." I say, giving him a pleading look. "Please?" I ask. 

He sighs, and then nods. 

I smile "Good, then let’s go plan for battle!" 


	6. In which Alisada argues with the King, a lot

"What do you mean he cannot speak?" King Theodan whispers, leaning in towards me. 

"Lord Swagathor intended to turn him into a rabbit, but the curse went astray and only stole his voice. Count your blessings, as he could be white and furry right now." I explain, trying not to show my frustration. I honestly don't know what Swagathor did, or how to undo it. If only the King would understand that! I look over at Aragorn, he is staring down at his folded hands on the table. King Theoden is pacing in front of us, looking angry, and afraid. 

"Then he is no use to us." 

“What about me?” I ask 

“What can you do?” 

“I can…..I can turn people into bright pink coffee mugs and I can see in the dark.” 

He gives me an incredulous look, "Really?" 

I nod, "Yes. Look--." 

I take my glove off at point it at one of the guards. There is a flash of purple light and a coffee mug falls to the ground. 

Theodan just stares at me. 

"Oh, it's not permanent. Fill him up with hot water and he will turn back to himself." I explain 

The other guard, who looks quite heartbroken that his friend got turned into a coffee mug gently picks up mug and walks out of the room. 

“You are no use to us either.” Theodan says 

“What!??!” 

“Shhhhhhhhh.” Aragorn hisses between his teeth, silencing me. 

I send him a glare. I think I would be quite useful in battle, but whatever. 

Aragorn looks up at Theodon and gives him a harsh glare. He motions to me for pencil and paper. I dig through my bag and hand it to him. He begins writing immediately. 

"How can you say that? A man does not necessarily need a voice to communicate. There are other ways." I argue. 

"Like what?" 

"Hand signals, noisemakers, or writing. We can do this, we can win." 

Aragorn taps his fingers on the table and hands me the paper with writing. 

"See, my Lord, we are already doing it." I tell him, and then begin to read out loud: 

"Gandalf the White will arrive at dawn tomorrow. I am sure he will have a solution. Until then, I believe I can be of use to you if we are able to devise a plan that will allow us to communicate with each other during the battle." 

"And what do you suggest?" he asks Aragorn. 

Aragorn grabs the paper from me and writes "Horns and hand signals." as I read outloud, Theodan nods. I can tell he is warming up to the idea. 

"We can create different sounds for different commands. My men are fast learners. We can teach them quickly." he says. 

"I will go in search of a horn. You and Lord Aragorn can start matching sounds to commands." he continues. 

I nod "Very well, my Lord." I tell him, and then he walks off briskly. 

I turn to Aragorn, "Shall we start? I really don't know anything about battle commands, so you will have to show me." I tell him. He shakes his head, and begins writing; 

"Thank you for being my voice. May I ask you one more favor? Can you go and find Legolas for me? In order for this to work he must know the code for the commands as well." 

I read, then reply "Your welcome. Of course I will." 

Then I stand up, and begin to search for the elf. Feeling slightly rejected. I would of liked to speak more with Aragorn. 

I find Legolas in the Armory talking softly to the dwarf, Lord Gimli. I walk over to him and tap him arm. 

"Excuse me, um, Legolas. Lord Aragorn requests your presence in the main room." I tell him. 

He nods, "Thank you, Lady Alisada." He says, and the swiftly passes me and makes his way towards the main room. 

Lord Gimli looks at me. "How is he?" he asks 

"Lord Aragorn?" I answer, slightly confused. 

"Are the rumors true? Is his voice truly lost?" 

"I wouldn’t say that it is entirely lost, more like temporarily frozen. I'm sure Gandalf will be able to cure whatever ails him." I answer, trying to sound positive. 

The dwarf nods. "Aye, just the sound of Gandalf's name brings me hope. May he arrive quickly and free Aragorn of this curse." 

I nod. "Yes, may he do so." 

"Well, Lass. You must find yourself some armor." he tells me. I look at him in surprise. "Why?" I ask, for I had every intention on joining the women and children in the caves when the fighting began. 

"I believe Lord Aragorn will need you by his side." 

I look at him, confused. "Why do you say that?" 

Gimli pats me on the shoulder, "Just something the Elf said earlier. Pay no attention to an old dwarfs mumblings. But the armor and swords are to my left if you wish." he says as he passes by me and leaves me standing alone. 

Aragorn? Need me? I walk over and pick up a sword. I should fight with him, after all we have been through. I wonder what Legolas said to Gimli? I swish the sword and cut the air. I will fight standing next to and we will win! 

 


	7. In which Alisada suffers from pre-battle jitters and Aragorn helps her get dressed.

"Why are you in here? Your going to have to fight." Legolas tells me, his face grim. 

I look up at him from the rock I am sitting on. I had decided last minute to accompany Lady Eowyn in the caves with the women and children. Regardless of what the elf had said earlier, something deep inside was telling me not to fight. And besides, she seemed like she needed more help then the men outside. I had been relieved when she asked me for help, I don’t think I was made for battle. 

"You must be out on the front within the hour" 

"WHAT?" I stand up and shout at the elf. A few of the women and children look up at me, surprised by my outburst. 

"You have to be by his side, you have to shout his commands." He rubs his ears "Your voice is certainly loud enough." 

"Why? I thought Theodan's men were fast learners, I thought they were going to listen to the horn." 

"That has changed. Theodan is commanding his men now, Aragorn is commanding Haldir and his troops." 

I am very confused. "Who's Haldir? What are you talking about?" I ask him. 

"The elves have come to fight for us." 

"They came now?" 

"Yes. We have no time to teach them. Battle is upon us." 

"Why me?" 

"Lord Aragorn requested you, he trusts you." 

I sigh, and then nod. "Alright. But if I die, my ghost will haunt your skinny little butt for the rest of eternity. Same goes for Aragorn." I mumble, walking past him and back out into the fort. 

Legolas leads me into the armory. I stare at all the men getting ready, and fight a building sense of panic. This is what had faltered me before, their eyes have no hope in them. They are scared. What I had said earlier to Aragorn, "We can fight them, and we will win!" now seems ridiculous. How can we win? Why did I even say that? 

Someone hands me a helmet, chain mail, armor, a sword. I stare at the equipment in my arms, how can this even protect me? I don't even know how to put it on. Then I see Aragorn, sharpening his sword. He meets me in the eye and smiles at me. He trusts me? How can he trust me, I am nothing, I have no courage. It left me when I realized that the outlook of this battle is not going to be in our favor. The room tilts slightly and I suddenly can’t catch my breath. I hear the clatter of the armor as it falls from my arms, I see Aragorn stand up and then I bolt from the armory. 

I want to run as fast as I can until I am far away from here. Far away from the hopeless stares and defeated faces. Unfortunately, I am trapped in Helm's Deep. How is this any different from a prison? We are all trapped. I run up the stairs in the darkening light and try to find a place to sit and calm down. I find a secluded nook and slide down against the wall. I put my head in my hands and try to control my sudden gasps for breath. My hands shake.  Tears run down my face, I grasp my knees, trying to stop shaking. My breathing hitches as I sob into my hands. I hope no one can hear me, this is not what people need to see right now. As far as I know, they think I'm still the strong women that rescued Aragorn from Swagathor. What will they think if they see me now? 

I feel a gentle hand on my shoulder. I open my eyes and peer up through my fingers. I see a very concerned Aragorn staring back. He kneels down next to me, even though he says nothing his eyes say clearly "are you okay?". 

I nod, "I'm alright" I manage between the hitches of breath, "Pre-battle jitters, you know?" I tell him.  

He just nods, then he reaches out with a handkerchief and wipes my tears from my face. I am trying desperately to control my breathing, but the more I struggle against it, the more I gasp for air.  

"I'm sorry" I manage to say, he shakes his head and takes my hand, squeezing it gently. He rubs his thumb over the top of my hand, trying to comfort me. It takes me a good five minutes to gain control of my breathing, and to stop crying. 

"I'm okay now." I finally tell him, and give him a watery smile. He still looks concerned, my eyes betray me as more tears role from them down my face. He smiles slightly and shakes his head again, then wipes my eyes with his handkerchief, again. 

 I lean my face into his shoulder, "I’m sorry about this. I guess I’m just nervous. First big battle." I try to explain, he pats my shoulder, and then tucks his hand under my chin and brings my eyes up to his.  

"Everything will be fine." he mouths slowly, so I can understand him. I nod, feeling a little less nervous. 

He points with his free hand to a bundle he had brought with him; it is the armor, chain mail, sword and helmet that I had dropped in the armory.  

"Thanks" I tell him. 

 He nods, then motions for me to stand up. I give him a questioning look. 

 "What?" I ask, he mouths "I'll help" and points again to the bundle.  

This time I understand; he's going to help me with the armor. He stands up, then offers me a hand. I take it, and stand up next to him. He picks up the chain mail first, and holds it up to me, seizing it up. He nods, and hands it to me. 

 "Put it on, like a shirt?" I ask him, he nods. I do "oof, its heavy." I tell him, he gives me a slight smile.  

The chain mail falls down, reaching my knees. He patiently helps me with the rest of the armor, which is surprisingly complicated, and heavy. The last thing he hands me is the sword, but it isn't the sword from the armory; it's my own sword, the one I grabbed before we left Isengard. I pull the handle up, and see that it has been sharpened for me.I see my reflection in the mirror, and for the first time I don’t feel like just a princess anymore, I feel like a person. 

 I smile at him, "Thank you" I tell him.  

He nods, then looks me over, straightening my cape and adjusting my helmet. I look down over myself, I can barely recognize me, for once I am wearing "normal" clothes, nothing bright green or purple or hideously sparkly.  

He grabs my shoulders and squeezes them, "ready?" he mouths. I nod, feeling the panic surge up inside me but then feeling reassured by his strong grip. 

 I smile "Yes." 


	8. In which Alisada does some deep cleaning and Swagathor finally gets what he deserves

The battle is about to begin and it is raining. I see the thousands of Saruman super pumped up Orcs standing there, I hear their long staffs beat against the ground. They are bellowing into the night, they are excited, they are ready for human blood. I turn my head slightly and see Aragorn, his stern face full of determination. I quickly review the commands in my head; one blast of the horn means "fire", two means "cease fire", three mean "charge" and one long blast means "fall back". It’s easy enough, I had to memorize it quickly because this cursed rain ruined the paper with the written commands. 

Suddenly an arrow from one of the Rohan warriors hits an orci. I hear Theodan shout "Cease your fire!" but it is too late, the orcs have prepared their bows. I see Aragorn raise the horn to his lips, and one loud blast comes from it. 

"FIRE!" I shout at the top of my lungs, and the elves behind us fire their arrows. The orcs begin running towards us and I fight with myself to stay grounded and not go running, screaming with terror away from all of this. 

Before I know it the orcs have come up and over the walls. I see Aragorn draw his sword, I do the same, and then shout "DRAW SWORDS!" to the men behind us. I hear the shrill sound of hundreds of swords being drawn. 

Then chaos sets it. I read once somewhere that you can plan and plan and plan for a battle, but when the battle is there and the fighting begins, all hell breaks loose. 

This is exactly what is happening. All I can see are blurs of the Urkai, all I can hear are the screams of the men dying. I fight for my life, like I have never fought before. 

Suddenly I feel myself being lifted up and then I am falling, falling, falling. I see the stones of the large wall, and manage to shout "ARAGORN!" before I hit the ground, and then I feel nothing at all. 

888 

"No! No, no no no!!!" 

An angry voice that is all too familiar shouts. I open my eyes and see a very upset Lord Swagathor glaring at me. 

"You're not supposed to be here!" He shouted 

"Then why did you bring me here?" I shoot back 

"I meant to transport Lord Aragorn, but I got you instead." He grumbles 

"I have been talking with Lord Saruman all morning, and he was pleased that I was able to capture Aragorn single handedly and even more pleased when I told him I could transport him here. But I got you instead. Great, now I have to get rid of you somehow." 

" why didn't you transport him with me?" I ask 

He ignores me, something inside me tells me he couldn’t because he isn’t a good enough wizard to transport two people at once, but I keep my opinion to myself. 

"Now, we have to decide on what to do with you. I think Lord Saruman would like you to start with the Orc's kitchen, and then move on the dungeon rack, oh, and mopping. This entire fortress needs to be cleaned and mopped. I think that’s a fair punishment, don't you think?" 

"Punishment? What did I do?" I ask 

"DO? WHAT DID YOU DO? You RUINED everything! You ran away, and brought Aragorn with you, you helped _them_ at Helms Deep and then I transported you instead of Aragorn! Blast you, girl. I'm going to make you pay for what you did. You are going to start cleaning. Right now." 

I stare at him with disbelief. He wants to punish me with cleaning? Lord Saruman also has an Orc’s kitchen? I bet it’s filthier than the one in the Tower of Terror.   

Swagathor laughs and stands up. "You better get started, I expect it to be clean by morning." then he leaves. 

I immediately think of Aragorn and the battle at Helm's Deep. What’s going to happen now? Did Gandalf arrive yet? I look out my window, but it is too dark. I sigh, then stand up, better get to cleaning. 

Saruman’s kitchen is dirtier than I expected. Infact, dirty isn't even the right word. More like filthy. The ground has so much dirt, and grease that the soles of my shoes actually stick to it. The table, is covered in scraps of rotting food and the stone oven is so greasy it is black. I sigh, and then get a bucket and a mop. I fill it up with water, and then add lots of powdered soap, and a couple of lemons to make it smell better. 

Then I start to work. 

I work non-stop until I am exhausted. I have successfully cleaned the floor, chair and table, with soapy lemon water to spare. There is no way to tell time in the kitchen but I feel like it is 3 or 4 in the morning. I set the bucket down on the table and sit down in one of the recently cleaned chairs and close my eyes. I will rest for only a few minutes, then get up and tackle the stove. 

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, GIRL?" 

I jolt awake in my chair and come nose to nose with an extremely angry Swagathor. 

"I EXPECTED YOU TO DO A JOB AND YOU DON'T DO IT. YOU DISOBEYED MY ORDERS COMPLETELY. HOW DARE YOU! YOU ARE A COMPLETE EMBARRASSMENT, I’M GOING TO CURSE YOU INTO OBLIVION…." 

As he continues to shout at me, I look past him to the window; it is daylight, but something is off, it is too bright outside. Isengard is much brighter than I expected it to be. I step aside the still yelling Swagathor and take a closer look. There is water, everywhere outside, and there are trees, moving! 

"YOU ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE YOUNG LADY, I SWEAR IF YOU DON'T GET THIS KITCHEN CLEAN I'M GOING TO CURSE YOU INTO OBLIVION" 

His power over my has diminished some, in my head all I hear is "blah blah blah blah" I roll my eyes at him and walk towards the door. 

"AND WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING?" 

He grabs me by the shoulder and pushed me against the table, I let out a yelp of pain. 

"LORD SWAGATHOR, BACK AWAY FROM HER AT ONCE!" 

A new, steady voice says. I look past the Swagathor and see a man standing in the kitchen doorway, his is tall and dressed all in white. Standing behind him, is Aragorn. I sigh in relief, he is okay. 

Swagathor sees Aragorn as well and turns away from me. He begins walking towards Aragorn, who backs away slightly. 

"So, the heir of Isildur has returned, to beg mercy no less? Well he has been greatly mistaken! Nothing can cure him of what ails him!" 

He advances towards Aragorn and grabs his arm. 

"Saruman will be so pleased to see you IN HIS DUNGEON!” 

Aragorn tries to pull away but Swagathor is too strong. He grabs Aragorn's throat roughly and whirls his around towards the back of the kitchen, where (just like in the Tower of Terror) there is a door that leads directly to the dungeon. I know this because there is a sign pointing to the door that says “To the dungeon” in a fancy cursive script. 

"Let go of him!" Theodan shouts and he attempts to throw Swagathor off Aragorn but the wizard grabs his staff with his free hand it shoots out a bright green crackling curse. Theodan shrieks, and then yells in surprise as he starts to float. 

By this time Swagathor has successfully dragged Aragorn halfway across the kitchen. I have to do something, but what? I have no weapons. My eyes land on the bucket of soapy water. Maybe if I toss it at him he will let go? It's worth a try. I grab the bucket. 

"Stop it, stop it I say! Let go of him!" I shout, but he ignores me. Exasperated I toss the bucket with as much force as I can at Swagathor and Aragorn. To my astonishment, it works, Swagathor lets go. Aragorn stumbles away from him, rubbing his eyes, trying to get the soap out. 

I am surprised to hear Swagathor whimpering "What have you done to me? Stupid princess! I took you in when nobody wanted you! I gave you a home! And this is how you repay me? Curse you sixteen ways from next Tuesday! May you and your lover boy turn green with blue spots and fall down a flaming bottomless pit with Balrogs at the bottom! Curse you! Curse you all!! AWWWWWHhjdfkjgfjdkghdfjkgjdf………" 

I step closer and look at him: He is melting! All three of us watch as the defeated Swagathor yelps and pleads and cries until he is a big puddle of goo. 

"What happened to him? Is he dead?" I ask in astonishment, for I had meant to only make him stop harassing Aragorn. 

"it seems you have melted him. Swagathor is finally defeated." the man in white replies. 

"I’m very grateful you didn't spill any on me. You did very well, Alisada" 

I nod thanks. 

"Oh, please forgive me, we haven't been introduced. I am Gandalf." 

"The moth man. Yes! It’s a pleasure to meet you" I reply, my attention returns to the puddle of what was once Swagathor. It is mixing in with the leftover water has begun draining. 

"The filth of Swagathor is finally washing away" Gandalf says happily. I smile, astonished at what I actually did. I turn to Aragorn, who is still trying to get soap out of his eyes. 

"Are you okay? I’m sorry I got you wet. But you were in the way." I tell him, Aragorn smiles, and just nods. 

He nods, then tries to speak, and to his astonishment, he can but is so surprised all he can make is a gurgling sound and " tankwhoadaaa". 

I smile "Wait, try that again." I tell him, and he does and this time he speaks clearly, 

"Thank you, Lady Alisada." 

I smile broadly back at him. 

He then asks me "What was in that water?" 

I shrug "Just soap, water and a bit of lemon juice. I needed it to clean out this filthy kitchen. Saruman’s Orcs are messier than Swagathors!" 

He raises his eyebrows at me, 

"That’s all that was in it?" 

"Trust me, if I had known that soap, water and lemon juice could defeat Swagathor I would have used it much earlier." 

Suddenly something occurs to me, if Aragorn’s curse had been lifted with the defeat of Swagathor, than maybe….. 

I take off my purple glove and point it at the still floating Theodan. 

With a yelp he falls to the ground, and turns a very fair shade of pink but does not turn into a coffee mug. 

“Well…..it’s a start.” I shrug 

Aragorn isn’t paying attention to the now pink Theodan though, he is looking at the gooey brown water than was once Swagathor. 

“Do all wizards melt with water, soap and lemon?” he asks Gandalf. 

Gandalf nodded, "Only the ones who have gone bad. Unfortunately, Swagathor’s heart had turned so black that something as pure as water melted him." 

“Is it permanent?” he asks 

"I believe so, unless he has a change of heart in the afterlife, which is unlikely. I’m glad your speaking again Aragorn, these past few days have been exceedingly difficult with your silence. Now you can finally tell me what exactly happened." He puts his hand on Aragorn's shoulder and leads him out of the kitchen, leaving me alone. 

I smile to myself, things have been changing an awful lot, but I am so happy I don't care. I look around the kitchen and put the bucket down, there’s no way I am going to clean it. 

With Swagathor defeated, I am finally free. I want to go with Aragorn, and Legolas, and Gandalf. They seem like much better company than Swagathor ever was. I stare at the leftover goo of what was once the wizard. He has no more power over me. I leave the kitchen, rejoicing in my new found freedom. In the hallway I run into Aragorn. 

"I want to thank you, for all you have done" he says, putting a hand on my shoulder "I don't think I would have succeeded without you, Alisada. You truly have my gratitude, my friend." he tells me and smiles I smile back at him, feeling slight butterflies in my stomach. 

"Your welcome, my lord. But I didn't do much. It was you who helped me. Thank you for helping me keep my head at Helms Deep" I tell him " Oh, and it’s nice to finally hear your voice." 

He nods "You are a valiant fighter. I have seen many men succumb to fear but none of them have ever beaten it. You are very brave, my lady. Would you like to join me by my side and fight for victory against the armies of Morder?" he asks me. 

I nod excitedly, "Yes, I would be honored to join you." 

He smiles and takes my hand, 

"I'm so glad", 

He gently leans forward and kisses me on the forehead. 

I finally found my happy ending. 

**Author's Note:**

> The whole reason I wrote this was to set up the NEXT story I am writing, about Alisada's adventures with the company of Thorin Oakenshield (she falls in love with Fili). When you are done with this one, please continue on to the sequel, "For the Love of Gold."
> 
> Thanks!


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